Christmas Time is Here...Happiness and Cheer...Fun for all That Children Call...Their Favorite Time of Year!

This is truly our favorite time of year. Not only does it celebrate the birth of our Lord, but it just doing all of these family things together does the heart good. The kids love the decorations, David loves the weather and I love remembering this time as the best times of my life...when I shared each of these kids first Christmas'.

So, while Belle was busy describing to her Rudolph that Christmas was not about Santa but really about "God things", David drug the decorations out of the attic. Over the course of Tuesday thru Friday, we began working on the decorating. David still has to put lights on the roof, and after that is done, I'll post pictures of it all.

But, the erecting of the tree is always my favorite things to capture. It has always been Belle's favorite part, and this would be Luke's first year to help. We intentionally completely revamped our tree about 3 years ago when Belle broke some ornaments on our old tree. We decided that Christmas decorating shouldn't involve a lot of swatting and "no-nos", so we changed the tree to a "candy Christmas" tree and everything on it is now non-breakable.

So, Friday night was the time. We got the tree together and David went to put the star on...dead. It was completely dead. So, we headed out (on the busiest shopping day of the year) to find a new star. Once it was properly in place, the kids went to town. I got some really sweet shots again this year. All photos are on our photos site, but here are just a few of my favorites.


Waiting patiently to decorate


We are great decorators


Luke's mad skillz


What does Lukey see?


Belle sees it too!


Sweet Belle


Be still my heart...


Look ma! The tree!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

Calling All Cars! Jesus is Missing...Again!

A Klepto...that's what I have on my hands. Please put out an All Points Bulletin. The suspect is male and around 2 feet tall with blondish-brown hair that has been cut short (even though his MiMi hates it). He has blue eyes about the color of the ocean...you know...ones you can get lost in. His eyelashes are long enough to fetch you from a mile away. And a smile that can take away all of your worries.

Now, we have 3 manger scenes throughout the Overstreet Christmas land. This one is the scene that David's mother made for us years ago. It holds a special place in my heart and the Baby Jesus in this one seems to go missing the most often.



...and it seems our home surveillance cameras got a glimpse of our perpetrator (with who seems like it could be his accomplice):



He really should work on his covert operations skills.

And then there is this scene. My best girlfriend and her husband (Matt and Becky) got this for us one year and I fell in love with it the moment I saw it. it is Joseph, Jesus and Mary and they spell out JOY! Afterall, this is the greatest joy to ever come into this world.



Again...our surveillance camera doing its job...



You would think he could at least invest in a ski mask or something!

And this scene is the newest addition to our little family. Alison gave it to the kids along with a tradition that her family did when she was little. Belle has set it up in her room....



Notice a few things missing?



Yes...Mary, Joseph and Baby Jesus are missing, but it is not by our perpetrator. The tradition we are now beginning with our kiddos is to put Mary and Joseph at the other end of the house. Beginning on December 1st the kids will begin moving Mary and Joesph towards "Bethlehem" (in Belle's room). They will find Bethlehem on Christmas Eve. When they wake up on Christmas Morning, they will "find a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger".

Until then, Mary and Joseph wait. Doesn't she look great for being in her 9th month? I was there just 2 years ago and I don't know how she looks so calm!



Maybe this process will teach our little Klepto about forgiveness!

Come On...We're Going for a HayRide!

My kids got to participate in their first hayride...ever! Yes, I know...we've just never had an opportunity to put them on a big, sneezy-inducing wagon. This year, Mr. Bill took all of Mrs. Kim's kids on a multi-hayride/picnic event.

I got there just in time to have hay stuck all over my body, too!

Here are just some of the pics I took...


Belle enjoying round one hundred and 11th...


This is Lukey's school girlfriend, Cloe...


The party at Mr. Bill's...


All that brown...duck poop...AFTER I had cleaned him up...

And just because I LOVE to see photos like this...


Makes this Momma's heart good!

Luke's Skillz

Luke is the only kid in his class at church. Don't cry for him...trust me...he LOVES the attention! And he would probably just yank toys away from the others, you know...if there were any.

However, it helps when he has loved his nursery teacher since he was, oh, 3 weeks old. He didn't know it then, but she's pretty defensive of him...those other little 2-year-old girls at his day school best step off! It also helps when said teacher is one of my best girlfriends, Tiffany...who he also sees at least once a week outside of church.

But a month or so ago, she began taking the opportunity to teach him, rather than just watch him push the NOISY toy vacuum around the nursery (we are working our way up to the Dyson so he can help Mommy). Here are just a few of the things he has learned...


What a great start to a well-developed vocabulary!


What else do you need to know?